Internet: Broadband

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many organisations (a) were requested to submit tenders, and (b) competed for the tender, in respect of the laying of underground ducts and fibre optic cables for the provision of the service of Next Generation Access Broadband and its services in Alston; on what basis the tender was awarded; by whom; and when.
	The Answer printed on Wednesday 13 October 2010 was incorrect. The correct version appears below.

Baroness Wilcox: This is a matter for Alston Cybermoor Ltd. The Government have no involvement.

Agriculture: Research

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the projects in crop agronomy funded by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs since 1997; and, in each case, what is (a) the topic of the research, (b) the cost of the project, (c) the date, (d) the project code, and (e) the main contractor, and whether the project has been completed.

Lord Henley: I am arranging for the information requested to be placed in the Library of the House.
	Agronomy research covers a wide range of topics, including research on the underlying physical, chemical and biological processes of agricultural production in order to underpin development of solutions for pest and disease control, management of soil fertility, reducing soil erosion and environmental pollution, etc.
	The data were taken from the Science Information System which is used to store data on all of Defra's research and development projects. Projects are assigned keywords, which are used to search for specific topics, and a combination was used to generate the list.
	The list of projects attached is as thorough as possible, but due to the design of the system and on a subject as broad, it is not possible to necessarily extract the data precisely as requested above, due to disproportionate costs. All data relating to Defra's research projects are also available on the public Search Science database, available on the Defra website at http://randd.defra. gov.uk/Default.aspx?Location=None&Module= filterSearchNewLook&Completed=0.

Audit Commission

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the estimated costs of abolishing the Audit Commission; and in particular the cost of (a) severance and redundancy payments, (b) pension liabilities, (c) the disposal of leasehold properties, and (d) the termination of contracts for the supply of goods and services.

Baroness Hanham: The costs of disbanding the Audit Commission will depend on the detail of our future approach to local audit. In order to protect the future of the Commission's well-respected in-house audit practice and to increase competition in auditing, we are seeking to put it into the private sector. We are working with the Commission to consider a range of options and assess possible liabilities. The costs of redundancies, and of terminating contracts for the supply of goods and services, will depend on a range of factors, including the option chosen for moving the Commission's in-house audit practice into the private sector. The effect of disbanding the Audit Commission on its pension fund will also depend on the options adopted for making these changes.

Audit Commission

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the amount of efficiency savings proposed by the Audit Commission in August 2010 to be made in its expenditure over the next three years; and what is the saving estimated to be made as a result of its abolition.

Baroness Hanham: In July 2010, the Audit Commission's board adopted an annual 10 per cent efficiency target to replace its previous 5 per cent target.
	As my right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government said in another place, we expect to save £50 million a year by disbanding the Audit Commission and moving its audit practice into the private sector.

Aviation: Engineers

Lord Ouseley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the number of skilled and experienced engineers in the United Kingdom, particularly within the aviation industry; and whether they intend to take measures to increase the number in order to support the development of new greener technologies.

Baroness Wilcox: The UK aerospace sector directly employs around 100,000, the majority of whom are skilled and experienced in engineering with some 36 per cent having a degree or equivalent. We are working closely with business, including ADS (the lead trade association), and organisations such as SEMTA, to understand and meet the demand future skills requirements arising from technology developments, including "greener" technologies to meet environmental challenges.
	In addition to investing in greener aerospace technologies through National Aerospace Technology Strategy projects such as Next Generation Composite Wing and Environmentally Friendly Engine, we are reforming the further education and skills system to better meet the needs of learners and employers. Government are currently running consultations on the future of further education and skills: on strategy (Skills For Sustainable Growth on the Future Direction of Skills Policy and on funding (A Simplified Further Education and Skills Funding System and Methodology). Ministers are also considering responses the Right to Request Time to Train consultation which has now closed. We are also working with SEMTA and COGENT sector skills councils who have established Sector Strategy Group for Composites to help ensure the supply of suitably qualified engineers and composites specialists in the future.

Careers Education

Baroness Morgan of Drefelin: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Statutory Guidance on Impartial Careers Education, published in October 2008, remains in force.

Lord Hill of Oareford: Schools are under a continuing legal obligation to have regard to the Statutory Guidance on Impartial Careers Education by virtue of Section 45A of the Education Act 1997, as amended by the Education and Skills Act 2008. Any future changes to the role of schools will be guided by the principle of freeing them from bureaucratic requirements and providing them with greater autonomy to make decisions about the level of support that is most appropriate for their pupils.

Energy: Renewables

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the initial impact of feed-in tariffs on stimulating growth in the United Kingdom photovoltaic sector.

Lord Marland: The feed-in tariffs (FITs) scheme for Great Britain has been running since 1 April and is still at an early stage. Although we are continually collecting data on uptake, it is too soon to make an accurate assessment of the initial impact on the solar PV sector.
	The document Reporting electricity Feed in Tariff data in DECC's energy statistics, available from the DECC website at intp://www.deec.gov.uldpublications/DefaultaspOtenn=energv%20trends&talls=&urn=&from Date=&toDate=&alpha, provides the statistical information so far collected on the scheme. Ofgem also provides publicly available reports on the scheme, including levels of solar PV uptake at https://wiww. renewablesandchp.ofuem.gov.uk/.

Flags

Lord Kilclooney: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether there are official flags for (a) England, (b) Wales, (c) Northern Ireland, and (d) Scotland.

Lord Shutt of Greetland: The national flags of England, Wales and Scotland are the Cross of Saint George; the Welsh Dragon (YDdraig Goch) and the Saltire of Saint Andrew respectively. The only official flag of Northern Ireland is the Union Flag.

Government Departments: Salaries

Baroness Thomas of Winchester: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the estimated net saving in the pay bill of Communities and Local Government for each of the next four years if all salaries and increments are frozen.

Baroness Hanham: The estimated net saving in the pay bill of Communities and Local Government for each of the next four years, if all salaries and increments are frozen, is shown in the table below:
	
		
			 Year Approximate Saving 
			 2010-11 1,324,835 
			 2011-12 851,656 
			 2012-13 983,197 
			 2013-14 870,955 
		
	
	The coalition Government have introduced a two-year pay freeze with a caveat that departments with contractual pay progression systems, should continue to make these payments.
	The figures in the table cover the pay settlement period for the CLG main department of August to July each year and include all increases in base pay for staff below the Senior Civil Service. Actual net savings from a freeze on salaries and increments will reduce broadly in proportion to the level of staff reductions required once the outcome of the Comprehensive Spending Review is announced.
	The Senior Civil Service have not been included in the above table as there are no automatic progression points in the Senior Civil Service pay structure.

Health: Funding

Baroness Greengross: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether there are any examples of local health providers injecting funds into local authorities so that the latter can extend funding support to individuals with assessed care needs that are other than critical or substantial.

Earl Howe: The information requested is not held centrally.
	There are a number of flexibilities in the Health Act 2006 that allow local authorities and National Health Service bodies to transfer or pool funds to improve the outcomes of their local populations. Decisions to do so are taken by local bodies. The flexibilities from the Act include:
	Section 75-supports partnership arrangements through lead commissioning, joint management of provision and pooled funds;Section 256-makes provision for primary care trusts (PCTs) to make transfer payments to local authorities; andSection 76-makes provision for local authorities to make transfer payments to PCTs.

House of Lords: Members

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: To ask the Chairman of Committees how many Members of the House there are in total; what has been the average daily attendance since 25 May 2010; and how many may be accommodated by seating in the Chamber at any one time.

Lord Brabazon of Tara: The current membership of the House is 777, and the average daily attendance since 25 May 2010 is 417. The red Benches in the Chamber can seat around 240 Members. Further space is available for wheelchair users, on the Woolsacks and on the Steps of the Throne.

House of Lords: Oral Questions

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: To ask the Chairman of Committees whether, given the requirement to be seated before asking a supplementary question at Question Time, he will invite the Procedure Committee to consider whether such questions could be asked by Members without a seat but who are in the Chamber.

Lord Brabazon of Tara: While I am aware of the problems with overcrowding in the Chamber, there are no microphones Below Bar or on the Steps of the Throne to allow Members to speak from those areas. Consideration could be given to allowing Members seated on the steps in the gangways to speak. If the noble Baroness writes to me with a formal proposal, I will of course put it before the Committee.

Immigration

Viscount Clancarty: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many creative workers have been awarded certificates of sponsorship under tier 5 of the immigration regulations since it was introduced on 27 November 2008.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government how many creative organisations applied to become a licensed sponsor for the purposes of tier 5 of the immigration regulations in the past 12 months.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government how many creative organisations had their applications to become a licensed sponsor for the purposes of tier 5 of the immigration regulations refused in the past 12 months; and what reasons were given for refusal.

Baroness Neville-Jones: Information relating to creative organisations separately from sporting ones is not collated centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
	Between 27 November 2008 to 6 October 2010, 43,645 certificates of sponsorship were used by workers under the tier five (creative and sporting) category of the points-based system.
	In the period 7 October 2009 to 6 October 2010, 825 organisations applied to become a licensed tier five (creative and sporting) sponsor. In the same period 55 organisations had their application to become a licensed tier five (creative and sporting) sponsor refused
	It is not possible to provide the reasons for refusal for each application but UK Border Agency reasons for refusal include previous poor compliance with sponsorship or work permit requirements, failure to be in possession of appropriate accreditation and failure to provide information necessary to assess compliance.

Niqabs

Lord Sheikh: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to ensure that women who choose to wear the niqab or burqa in public are not subject to discrimination.

Baroness Hanham: Women who chose to wear niqab or burqa are protected by the Equality Act 2010, the core provisions of which were commenced on 1 October, by the Government Equalities Office, carries forward previous legal protection from discrimination and harassment because of religion or belief, or lack of belief, in areas including employment, the provision of goods, facilities and services, education and the exercise of public functions.

Niqabs

Lord Sheikh: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of how often women who wear the niqab or burqa are refused entry to public buildings.

Baroness Hanham: Such data are not recorded centrally by government; therefore no assessment has been made.

Niqabs

Lord Sheikh: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to engage with religious and community leaders when considering the issue of women wearing the niqab or burqa in the United Kingdom.

Baroness Hanham: Government departments regularly meet representatives of all faith groups to discuss issues that concern them. The Government do not plan to discuss burqa and niqab issues specifically.

Plants

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the projects in traditional plant breeding funded by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs since 1997; and, in each case, what is (a) the topic of the research, (b) the cost of the project, (c) the date, (d) the project code, and (e) the main contractor, and whether the project has been completed.

Lord Henley: I am arranging for the information requested to be placed in the Library of the House.
	Defra funds research to underpin traditional plant breeding where this delivers public goods and would otherwise not be funded by industry. The research covers a wide range of topics, from understanding the genetic control of traits to the development of genetic resources, tools and techniques for breeding.
	The data was taken from the Science Information System which is used to store data on all of Defra's research and development projects. Projects are assigned keywords, which are used to search for specific topics, and a combination were used to generate the list.
	The list of projects is as thorough as possible, but due to the design of the system, it is not possible to necessarily extract the data precisely as requested above, due to disproportionate costs. All data relating to Defra's research projects are also available on the public Search Science database, available on the Defra website at http://randd.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Location=None&Module=FilterSearchNewLook&Completed=0.

Presbyterian Mutual Society

Lord Mawhinney: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has the responsibility for handling their response to representations on behalf of Presbyterian Mutual Society members; and, if not, who has.

Lord Shutt of Greetland: My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland chairs the ministerial working group that is seeking to find a fair and just solution to the problems faced by members of the Presbyterian Mutual Society.
	The Financial Secretary to the Treasury and the Minister of State for Northern Ireland are also members of the working group along with the First and Deputy First Ministers of Northern Ireland, the Minister of Finance and Personnel and the Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment.
	Representations from members have been made to all members of the working group as well as to the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister. Replies are generally sent from the office of the relevant Minister to which the correspondence has been sent but on occasion may be transferred to another department for consideration depending on the nature of the representation that has been made.

Questions for Written Answer

Lord Jopling: To ask the Chairman of Committees whether he has made proposals for a Home Office Minister and the Home Office Permanent Secretary to appear before the Procedure Committee in relation to the 15 Questions for Written Answer to the Home Office tabled in July which still awaited an answer on 5 October.

Lord Brabazon of Tara: No. The punctuality of Government replies to Questions for Written Answer is a matter for the Leader of the House. However, it is open to the noble Lord, as a member of the Procedure Committee, to put his proposal to the Committee directly.

Religious Tolerance

Lord Sheikh: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps will they take to maintain tolerance and respect for all religious beliefs in British society.

Baroness Hanham: Faith communities make a vital contribution to national life: guiding the moral outlook of many, inspiring great numbers of people to public service, providing succour to those in need.
	Britain has a proud tradition of religious tolerance, within the law. The Government are committed to creating a strong and integrated society in which hatred and prejudice are not tolerated and in which all people are free to express their identity and live without fear of harassment and crime that targets them because of that identity.
	The Government welcomes and supports the growth of dialogue and shared action between different religious groups. We want to help build effective, friendly working relationships between people of different faiths.
	Inter Faith Week 2010, from 21 to 27 November, will be an important focus for inter faith activities. Despite tight spending pressures, we are able to make some funds available to support activities during the week.
	We have also decided to continue with the Faiths in Action scheme-grants of up to £6,000 to support innovative local inter faith projects, including during Inter Faith Week. This Government have approved 179 projects totalling £995,000. Many of these have an emphasis on people from different backgrounds coming together to address local problems such as improving green spaces, as well as promoting tolerance and respect.

Savings

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of comments by the Deputy Governor of the Bank of England that savers should increase their levels of spending in light of the policy of encouraging people to save for their retirement.

Lord Sassoon: The Government are committed to reinvigorating private pension saving. In the short term it is also important that household spending supports demand and recovery in the economy. This contribution to stronger national income now will in turn contribute to stronger saving in the future.

Schools: Vocational Qualifications

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report by Civitas on the activities of schools in encouraging pupils to take vocational exams to boost their rankings in educational league tables.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they will take to prevent students from poorer backgrounds being directed inappropriately towards vocational qualifications rather than GCSEs.

Lord Hill of Oareford: The Civitas report is an interesting and important report. We agree that we need to take steps to ensure that schools are encouraging young people to take qualifications that are most appropriate for the individual pupil concerned.
	The Government are currently developing a new approach to qualifications, considering all routes which are available to young people, to ensure that the qualifications they study for are rigorous, relevant and bear comparison with the best in the world.
	We will reform the school performance tables to encourage schools to enter young people for the qualifications that are in their best interests.
	We will be making announcements about those reforms in the coming months.

Soil

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the projects on soil science funded by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs since 1997; and, in each case, what was (a) the topic of the research, (b) the cost of the project, (c) the date, (d) the project code, and (e) the main contractor, and whether the project has been completed.

Lord Henley: Defra (or its predecessor departments) has commissioned wide-ranging studies on soils and soil protection since 1997, exploring the relationship with agricultural productivity, water and air quality, land management and development, biodiversity and climate change. Data have been compiled using the Science Information System which stores information on all of Defra's research and development projects. Each research project is assigned certain appropriate keywords, a list has been generated utilising "soil" and "soils" which will be placed in the Library of the House.
	The results are as closely matched as possible to the request, but there will be additional research projects that Defra has funded relating to soil science that have not been picked up in this initial search (for example, if the primary focus of the study was on water quality). In order to create a comprehensive list, disproportionate costs would be entailed.
	This data and final reports are also publicly available on the Defra website at http://randd.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Location=None&Module=FilterSearchNew Look&Completed=0.

Taxation: Information Exchange Agreements

Lord Myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the United Kingdom has a tax information exchange agreement with Monaco.

Lord Sassoon: The UK has no tax information exchange agreement with the Principality of Monaco.